Due South

Mayor Harold Weinbrecht joins Leoneda Inge to talk about leading the town he grew up in, managing Cary’s growth, and his proclamation to change the name of Cary to “Carey” for one day — plus, property taxes and pickleball.

Then, North Carolina Health News reporter Rachel Crumpler investigated deaths by suicide in North Carolina’s prison system and found an increase in these deaths among incarcerated people in 2024. She talks with co-host Jeff Tiberii about how prison officials are responding, and about one family's grief.

On the North Carolina News Roundup... 

After more than six months of legal battles, Allison Riggs has officially been sworn into the North Carolina Supreme Court.

The NC House has begun rolling out its budget proposal. Due to a decrease in funds, legislators are tasked with determining spending cuts.

No charges will be filed after Chuck Edwards, a U.S. Representative for Western North Carolina, was accused of hitting a man with a clipboard during a Rotary conference.

And — the politicization of libraries.

Co-host Jeff Tiberii talks with a panel of journalists about those stories and more, on Due South.

Guests

Colin Campbell, Capitol Bureau Chief, WUNC

Dawn Vaughan, Capitol Bureau Chief, The News & Observer

Gary Robertson, statehouse reporter, Associated Press

Lilly Knoepp, Senior Regional Reporter, Blue Ridge Public Radio (BPR)

As the EPA faces even more cuts, we revisit a conversation earlier this summer with two former EPA Office of Research and Development employees on what they accomplished in the office. Guests: Chris Frey, Associate Dean for Research and Infrastructure, College of Engineering at NC State University and Jennifer Orme-Zavaleta, retired EPA science advisor. And Durham-based jazz vocalist and storyteller Nnenna Freelon's new album, Beneath the Skin, is the first project in her 40-year career that is comprised of completely original songs. She joins Due South in studio to talk about her experience writing and touring her new work. She also performs select songs from the album, accompanied by guitarist Keith Ganz.

In January 2025, President Joe Biden signed a bill into law, renaming a Raleigh post office on Brentwood Road as Millie Dunn Veasey Post Office. Born in Raleigh in 1918, Veasey was a member of the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) and the Women's Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC) from 1942-1945. Last week, family, friends, politicians and veterans gathered for a ceremony to honor Veasey. (This interview excerpt originally aired February 3, 2025)

Then, Grant Hill has earned many titles over the years, including NBA All-Star, Olympic champion, sports broadcaster, art collector, and two-time national champion with the Duke Blue Devils men’s basketball team. Now, add Duke University 2025 commencement speaker to the list. Due South’s Jeff Tiberii got a chance to talk with Hill as he prepared to deliver the commencement address at Duke, 100 years after the first class graduated.

Tariffs, trade wars, and market turbulence are enough to make anyone nervous. At the same time, many of the Triangle’s grant-supported researchers and federal workers are also facing job insecurity. It’s enough to make anyone desperate for some sage financial advice. The Washington Post personal finance columnist Michelle Singletary joins Due South’s Leoneda Inge to share some hard truths and provide some hope for a path forward.

Guest

Michelle Singletary, personal finance columnist, The Washington Post 

Nearly 80 percent of HBCU students borrow federal loans. For many, a college education would not be possible without the accrual of this debt, and the repayment process can lead to long-term financial challenges for graduates. Financial aid officers are tasked with preparing students for the impact of loan borrowing on their future. For this edition of "HBCU 101," Due South co-host Leoneda Inge talks to the director of scholarships and student aid at North Carolina Central University about how the institution works to ensure that its students are not overwhelmed with financial strain after earning their degrees.

Guest

Denise Hicks-Mial, director of scholarships and student aid at North Carolina Central University

Editor's note: This Due South interview was recorded before recent tariff negotiations with China.

The prices of imported goods are almost certain to go up, as tariffs from the U.S. take effect. While President Trump has instated a 90-day pause, it doesn’t apply to a 145% tariff on China. 

And, NC School districts relied on federal funding to buy local produce, but that federal funding is now gone.

Plus, NPR’s Emily Feng shares stories of a growing and changing China in Let Only Red Flowers Bloom.

Guests

Liz Schlemmer, Education reporter at WUNC 

Emily Feng, foreign correspondent for NPR who was based in Beijing and Taipei, and author of the new book Let Only Red Flowers Bloom 

Eli Chen, Digital Producer at WUNC 

On the North Carolina News Roundup... A resolution in the state Supreme Court race, six months after Election Day. Jefferson Griffin, the Republican challenger, conceded defeat to Allison Riggs, the Democratic incumbent. Griffin lost in November and spent months exhausting legal challenges. There is new oversight at the NC State Board of Elections, with Republicans now in control. What does that mean in a state that is often home to razor-thin margins? And US Senator Thom Tillis breaks again with the president. Co-host Jeff Tiberii talks with a panel of journalists about those stories and more, on Due South. 

Rusty Jacobs, Voting and Election Integrity Reporter, WUNC

Lynn Bonner, Investigative Reporter, NC Newsline  

Danielle Battaglia, Capitol Hill correspondent, The News & Observer/The Charlotte Observer/McClatchy 

Adam Wagner, reporter/editor covering state politics for the North Carolina Newsroom  

Six months after the election, we have a resolution from November's NC Supreme Court race. Jefferson Griffin, a Republican, conceded to Allison Riggs, the Democratic incumbent, ending months of challenges. Plus, the NC State Board of Elections is now controlled by Republicans, and for the first time in more than a century, no longer under the purview of the Governor. What does this mean for election administration in our state? Political scientist Chris Cooper fills us in.

Then, even under the best circumstances, parenting can be stressful. So when natural disasters upend a community’s sense of safety, security, and routine, the impact on families can be particularly profound. Writer Gray Chapman and photographer Erin Brethauer explored the experiences of mothers following the flooding that forever changed the physical and emotional landscape of western North Carolina. They tell Due South co-host Jeff Tiberii about the story they documented in words and images for The Bitter Southerner titled “Mothering at the End of the World.”

And, Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Ernie Suggs graduated from North Carolina Central University 35 years ago. This weekend he’ll be up on that graduation stage again, this time as an NCCU commencement speaker. He joins Due South to talk about his deep North Carolina ties and his hopes for the next generation of journalists.

Each spring, High Point, North Carolina becomes the center of furniture design and manufacturing during the Spring Market. This year there was a twist – a looming tariff war.

Plus, how two students' lives have changed, a year after an Israel-Palestine protest.

Student activist Laura Saavedra Forero’s prestigious Morehead-Cain scholarship was suspended for a semester after she was charged with impeding traffic and resisting an officer at a pro-Palestinian protest. 

Brendan Rosenblum held an Israeli flag in protest when other protestors replaced the American flag at the center of campus with a Palestinian one, and he ended up in pro-Trump 2024 campaign materials, even though he planned to vote for a Democrat. 

Guests

Brianna Atkinson, higher education reporter WUNC

Paul Garber, Reporter WFDD

Mark S. Laferriere, Assurance Partner at Smith-Leonard Accountants and Consultants

Tammy Covington, President and CEO High Point Market Authority